Members of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force have fired about 100 shots into the Manus Island detention centre, it's claimed, leaving asylum seekers 'extremely frightened'.

Military officers stationed at the Lombrum Naval Base, next to the detention centre, began shooting into the complex between 6.30pm and 7pm while asylum seekers hid in their rooms, Ian Rintoul of the Refugee Action Coalition says.

Security workers and some Australian staff are understood to have fled the compound, and boarded a ship.

Unconfirmed reports suggest a fight broke out between asylum seekers and military officers on the soccer field. When the refugees returned to the compound, their opponents followed to continue the argument.

Mr Rintoul says the attackers were originally armed with rocks and knives, but were not able to gain entry to the compound and used guns instead.

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While it is believed the shooting has stopped for now, Mr Rintoul says those living in the compound are frightened escalating tensions could lead to another incident similar to that which resulted in the death of asylum seeker Reza Berati in 2014.

'People are extremely frightened, because this raises the spectre of the kind of attack in 2014 that resulted in the death of Reza Berrati,' Ian Rintoul of the Refugee Action Coalition told Daily Mail Australia.

'It reveals how vulnerable people on Manus are and how tenuous the situation is - even after three and a half years it's an extremely volatile situation.'

Graphic images shared by the Refugee Action Coalition show bullet holes in the walls of the Manus Island detention centre (pictured)

A man who has been on Manus Island since 2013 told Daily Mail Australia the fight originated when some drunk Navy officers tried to kick the detainees off the soccer field.

He said it soon turned into a fight with more locals getting involved, and a Sudanese asylum seeker was beaten up. As other detainees realised the man was being hit, they ran in to help him.

When locals began throwing stones, the asylum seekers escaped back to the camp. Locals began throwing stones over the fence, and the asylum seekers threw them back, the man said.

A Navy car driving past stopped so its passengers could talk with people throwing stones, he claimed.

They sped off and soon came back with more people, who were armed with 'guns, machetes and sticks', he said.

The detainee, who wished not to be named, said Wilson Security guards were also under attack during the incident, but when they escaped the Navy officers blocked the road.

Bullet holes also hit what appears to be metal piping at the compound, the RAC claim

'[PNG Navy personnel] tried to break the lock of Oscar camp on the main gate,' he said.

'It was so scary. Some people were so scared and shocked, and some were crying as the locals started shooting.

'But before this happened, they had evacuated all of the staff in the camp, so it was only us.

'That's much scarier – when you see they are all escaping and leaving you behind and at the same time you know you're being attacked.'

The man said officers were shooting for more than 20 minutes, and at times were aiming directly at the fence of the compound.

'If they saw anyone outside, they would aim at them,' he said.

It is claimed about 100 bullets were fired by Navy personnel towards the complex on Friday evening

He said he was present during the 2014 riot which saw 23-year-old Iranian asylum seeker Reza Berati killed, and had flashbacks of being beaten as he hid from the gunshots under a bed on Friday evening.

'Those memories were coming to me again and reviving,' he said.

'This time I knew they didn't care if you had done anything wrong or not, they would just beat you, because last time they wouldn't care for anyone, they would beat everybody.'

He says guards have not been able to guarantee the shooting is over for the night, and have advised detainees to stay away from the fences.

'There is nothing we can do,' he said.

'We are locked in a camp with nowhere to go and nothing to do. Some of the people in here have tried to make weapons for themselves in case of an attack, some of my friends are sleeping with their shoes on and many others can't sleep.'

An advocate in close contact with some of the men on Manus says she had been told tension between the locals and asylum seekers had been escalating 'for weeks'

'Tension has been building in the camp a lot over the last few weeks,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'I was told on more than one occasion by the men that they felt 'something was going to happen'.'

It is understood security and staff in the compound fled and boarded a ship, leaving refugees and asylum seekers on their own

Photographs shared by the Refugee Action Coalition show bullet holes in fencing around the rooms, as well as in walls and poles in the compound.

Video also shared by the RAC shows a car pull away from the compound as multiple shots are fired. An Australian man is heard shouting in the background, though it is not clear what he is saying.

Mr Rintoul claims almost 999 refugees and asylum seekers remain on the island in 'dangerous' conditions, and says this will not be fixed by a deal struck by the Australian Government for the United States to take some of the men.

'Even if the US deal goes ahead, hundreds of people are going to be left behind on Manus and Nauru,' he said in a statement.

'Malcolm Turnbull cannot pretend the US deal offers any solution for those people illegally held on Manus Island.

'Sooner or later, the people taken to Manus will have to be taken back to Australia. PNG has no ability of intention to resettle any refugees or asylum seekers.

'The Good Friday incident is one more reason why Malcolm Turnbull should act immediately to close Manus and Nauru and bring bring all the refugees to Australia.'

Behrouz Boochani, a journalist living on Manus, says some military officers managed to break into the rooms in the compound, though there have been no injuries

Manus Island MP Ron Knight claims the incident began when a defence officer was 'assaulted by refugees'.

He says soldiers retaliated, but were outnumbered, causing a 'riot'. He further claimed the gunshots were 'warning shots' to say police were attending.

'Yes people warning shots. If they were shooting at them they would be dead,' he said on Twitter.

Behrouz Boochani, a journalist living on Manus, claims PNG defence personnel have since broken into some of the rooms, and described the situation as critical.

He tweeted about the situation, saying there have been no injuries, and reported Australian security officers still in the compound were also 'extremely scared'.

At about 10.30pm, Mr Behrouz reported through his Twitter account that the Australian staff had recently also evacuated the centre at the direction of their bosses.

He wrote: 'The officers closed the gates and left the centre. We are alone, nobody here to protect refugees'.

'The refugees are scared of another attack on the centre. The Australian officers did not tell us, why did they leave the centre?'

Kon Karapanagiotidis of the Asylum Seekers Resource Centre said the incident showed why asylum seekers on Manus Island should be brought to Australia.